Around the Nation

Published
5:30 am CDT, Monday, June 6, 2005

PENNSYLVANIA

Sunken anchor blamed in oil spill

PHILADELPHIA - Investigators have concluded that a rusty anchor on the bottom of the Delaware River ripped the hull of a Greek oil tanker last fall, causing some 265,000 gallons of crude oil to pour into the waterway. Investigators have not identified the anchor's owner or determined how it came to rest on the river bottom. The Nov. 26 spill hampered shipping and polluted more than 100 miles of shoreline in Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware. At least 180 birds were killed. Initial cleanup costs have been tallied at $167 million.

COLORADO

Bride-to-be dies hours before vows

AURORA - A 25-year-old woman died in a two-car collision only hours before she was to be married. Police found Arlene Gavrilis' wedding dress in her Volkswagen Beetle after the collision early Saturday. She was to marry

Adam Hawkes
later in the day. Gavrilis may have been attempting to make a U-turn when her vehicle was struck by a Dodge Ram. The driver of the truck suffered only minor injuries. No charges were immediately filed.

GEORGIA

Group disputes Boy Scouts audit

ATLANTA - A civil rights group official on Sunday dismissed a Boy Scouts audit of the number of blacks participating in an inner city youth program, saying the figures still are unrealistic.
Joseph Beasley
of the
Rainbow/PUSH Coalition
said that although the
Atlanta Area Council
released an audit last week claiming more than 5,300 black Boy Scouts were registered in the Operation First Class program, fewer than 500 blacks are actually registered. Beasley said he would challenge the council today to identify the Scouts.

NEW JERSEY

Prostitution sting snares 80-year-old

LINDENWOLD - Police busted the alleged madam of a prostitution ring called "August Playmates": an 80-year-old grandmother.
Vera Tursi
was arrested last month during a sting operation to crack down on prostitution rings. Tursi ran the business from her two-bedroom apartment, taking $60 of every $160 she charged clients for one hour with a call girl. Tursi said she needed money to subsidize her
Social Security
checks.